Seeping Back into the Matrix

Welcome to the final episode of our current Tale for Our Time - the second half of our Scott Fitzgerald double-bill. As the concluding episode of The Rubber Check begins, Val Schuyler is momentarily flush:

Regard him on a spring morning in London in the year 1930. Tall, even stately, he treads down Pall Mall as if it were his personal pasture. He meets an American friend and shakes hands, and the friend notices how his shirt sleeve fits his wrist, and his coat sleeve incases his shirt sleeve like a sleeve valve; how his collar and tie are molded plastically to his neck.

He has come over, he says, for Lady Reece's ball.

Enjoy it while you can. Soon Val will be even more dressed.

Members of The Mark Steyn Club can hear me read the conclusion of The Rubber Check simply by clicking here and logging-in. Earlier episodes can be found here.

Oh, and, if you're in the mood for a more raucous bit of audio entertainment this weekend, don't forget our special edition of On the Town, in which I talk to rock legend Ted Nugent.

We'll be back later this month with a special seasonal Tale for Our Time. Meanwhile, if you've yet to hear any of our Tales, you can do so by joining The Mark Steyn Club. For details on membership, see here - and, if you're seeking something for a fellow fan of classic fiction this holiday season, don't forget our limited-time-only Christmas Gift Membership, which includes a personally autographed book or CD set from yours truly.

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3 Reader Comments

Jeffrey Bartram • Dec 4, 2017 at 02:27

Hi Mark,

An admirer from the colonies here! (What can I say- you've turned me onto fiction!) I'm normally into non-fiction as far as literature goes,but after listening to the first episode of the Rubber Check I just couldn't wait for the next and final installment. Such a great tale.The way you read it,I can see it all in my minds' eye,like a movie. The premise actually reminds me of Robert Bresson's "L'Argent". Perhaps you could do a write up of that for your next movie review? Anyway,love your work. All the best--Jeffrey from Down Under

Ronald Riley • Dec 4, 2017 at 00:05

"Incases?" I think you meant "encases."

Mark replies:

Take it up with Scott Fitzgerald. That's what he wrote.

But, for what it's worth, in the matter of garb, I would have said "incase" too.

Ronald Riley Ronald Riley • Dec 4, 2017 at 05:48

Thanks for schooling me! The things I learn from reading your stuff...